Dachshund get their own museum in Germany

The museum in Germany has over 4500 sausage-dog artefacts. Photo / Supplied

The city of Passau on the Austrian border has opened a museum to the lowly sausage dog, and it has a few long-dog stories to share about the state's favourite breed of pooch.

The there's no shortage of affection for the low and long dog breed, nor a lack of names.

Dakelmuseum: Curators Seppi Küblbeck, left, and Oliver Storz in Passau. Photo /Supplied

Whether you call them a Wiener, Sausage dog, Dachshund or – in the local Bayerische dialect – Dakel, this museum honours the tradition of Germany's most lovable breed of dog. (Sorry, Schnauzers and Alsatians.)

The museum in south Germany, which officially opened in 2018, has over 4500 items associated with what it has called the "symbol of Bavaria".

Picasso, Einstein and Spock were all fans of the Dachshund. Photo / Supplied

The Dakelmuseen is a collection of sausage-dog-shaped items amassed over a quarter century. This includes the likeness of Waldi, the official mascot for the 1972 Olympic Games, and photos of famous Dachshund lovers.

Among the photos are Leonard Nimoy (aka Mr Spock) and physicist Albert Einstein with their dogs. Clearly, the sausage dog is the thinking man's hound.

Dynamic Dachshund: Giacomo Balla was a fan of the Bavarian dog. Photo / Wikimedia Commons

"The world needs a sausage dog museum," curator Seppi Küblbeck told the BBC.

"No other dog in the world enjoys the same kind of recognition or popularity as the symbol of Bavaria, the sausage dog."

As well stamps, prints and toys there are several porcelain dogs, which are a regional craft item.

Sausage dog: the Dachshund has many international admirers. Photo / Supplied

The name Dachshund translates to Badger Dog, and they were bred to be able to fit in the animals' burrows while hunting.

Today their adorably short legs make them as prized among pet lovers as they are among Bavarian hunters.

The German dog has a unique outline